Étude d'inclusions végétales dans des tessons de poterie ou des matériaux de construction

Vegetal inclusions embedded in clayey materials (cob, ceramic, mudbrick) are investigated by using impregnation of the porous material with a fluorescent polymer. The micro-casting of the porosity is exploited by following two ways. Sections of the treated samples are examined under UV-light, showing vegetal structures amenable to a botanical identification and quantification. Moreover, micro-casts embedded in the mineral matrix have been successfully sorted. This new application is a tool to study archaeological samples previously not amenable to the work of archaeobotanists and to expand their field of investigation.